Explore the Bustling Stalls at Cai Dam Seafood Market

1 A Brief Introduction to Cai Dam Seafood Market

Address: Address: Tien Ong Street, Bai Chay Ward, Ha Long City, Quang Ninh Province

Opening hours: All day

Construction of Cai Dam Seafood Market began in 2012, and it officially opened in 2016. The market stands out for both its spacious interior and architecture. It covers a total area of 4,772.51 square meters and was built with an investment of 258 billion VND. The market is designed across 6 floors, with more than 750 permanent business spaces.

2 Come explore Cai Dam Seafood Market with MIA.vn!

When visiting the market, travelers can immerse themselves in an incredibly exciting world of goods on offer at Cai Dam Market in Quang Ninh.

2.1 Unique, modern facilities

Having been officially open for more than five years, Cai Dam Seafood Market is considered a traditional market and one of Ha Long's liveliest, busiest places to buy seafood. Before we explore the seafood on offer, MIA.vn would like to share some interesting details about the market's infrastructure.

Cai Dam Seafood Market is the best-known market in Bai Chay. It stands out as a spacious six-story building, with each floor designed to be modern and exceptionally convenient. Different products are carefully organized across the floors, and the stalls feature a variety of designs, clear signs, and sellers' names, making it easier for visitors to find their way around.

The ground floor features more than 300 businesses selling agricultural produce, food, and fresh seafood. The first floor offers a completely different experience, with more colorful stalls selling fashion, cosmetics, stationery, pharmaceuticals, and general merchandise. The second floor is just as distinctive, with more than 200 businesses selling electronics, wooden furniture, souvenirs, and jewelry. The remaining floors are just as bustling, with a wide range of other essential goods for sale.

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2.2 What should you buy at Cai Dam Seafood Market?

A renowned traditional market in Bai Chay, Cai Dam welcomes local and international visitors alike. You can browse a huge selection of goods, from dried products to fresh produce. You may not know that Cai Dam Market is also a wholesale seafood market for Bai Chay, offering a wide variety of fresh seafood, including crabs, shrimp, and squid.

The seafood here is exceptionally fresh; it is all high-quality catch brought in that very day. As a result, dishes made with seafood bought at Cai Dam Market are always fresh and full of rich ocean flavors. When prepared, they let diners savor the taste of the sea. Here are some of the most popular seafood picks among visitors.

Ha Long squid cakes: These are arguably Quang Ninh's number-one specialty, with high sales every year. It is estimated that each visitor to Quang Ninh buys around 0.5 kg of Ha Long squid cakes to enjoy or give to family and friends.

Sipunculus worms: At traditional Cai Dam Seafood Market, you can buy these worms fresh or dried. Both varieties are highly nutritious and taste wonderful, too. Here's a handy tip for choosing them: look for worms with plump bodies that are uniform in size. The brighter their pink skin, the better. Avoid dried worms that are flat-bodied and dull in color.

Mackerel: Choosing fish may seem easy, but it can be tricky—especially when it comes to mackerel. To find the freshest fish, check that its eyes are clear and only slightly bulging. Fish with large, swollen, cloudy or sunken eyes, or with non-elastic corneas, are no longer fresh. Another easy way to identify fresh mackerel is to look for shiny, unblemished skin, a deeply recessed anus, and a flat, sunken belly.

Ngán clams: Ngán clams are larger and more nutritious than ordinary clams. They can be used to make a variety of delicious dishes and are especially popular with men. When buying them, choose medium-sized clams that are similar in size, and make sure the soaking water has no unusual smell.

Spotted grouper: The spotted grouper sold at Cai Dam Market is very fresh and quite large. Many stalls offer this fish, giving visitors plenty of options.

Peeled dried shrimp: Peeled dried shrimp is a popular souvenir among visitors to traditional Cai Dam Market. The shrimp is delicious and sweet, with a flavor much like fresh shrimp. To ensure the best taste, choose shrimp that are naturally bright red, firm, and free of a strong fishy smell.

Quang Ninh shrimp floss: This famous local specialty is easy to find at food stalls in Cai Dam Market. It is highly nutritious and made from finely pounded shrimp and meat, combined with a variety of seasonings such as gac oil, fish sauce, ginger, mac khen pepper, and more. The result is a distinctive, delicious flavor that makes it a popular souvenir among visitors.

The market also sells some other unusual seafood, such as geoduck, three-spined fish, and tamarind-glazed squid. There's plenty of variety to discover at this traditional market.

The market also sells other unusual seafood, such as ngán clams, geoduck, spotted grouper, and peeled dried shrimp. There's plenty of variety to discover at this traditional market. 

2.3 What should you eat at Cai Dam Seafood Market?

Blending traditional and modern design, Cai Dam Seafood Market is not only home to eye-catching stalls but also a food lover's paradise. There is a dedicated area for cooked dishes, where you can sit down and enjoy your meal right away. Everything is delicious and very reasonably priced.

Yen Oc Restaurant - Address: Lot 1A, Group 1, Zone 8, Cai Dam, Bai Chay

Opening hours: 11:00 - 22:00

Here, you can enjoy all kinds of delicious seafood, especially shrimp floss and squid. If you're stopping by for a main meal, don't forget to order a bowl of hot porridge with seafood. Its delicious ingredients mingle with the fragrant steam rising from the bowl, making it hard to resist.

Ngoc Son Snails and Grilled Chicken Feet Restaurant - Address: 976 Cai Dam, Bai Chay

Opening hours: 18:00 - 24:00

When visiting traditional Cai Dam Seafood Market, be sure to try the delicious snail dishes here, including screw snails, apple snails, sucking snails, and rock snails. They're seasoned just right, and the accompanying sauce is rich, tasty, and hard to resist. Best of all, a meal costs around 150,000 VND per person and is filling, too—what could be better?

Cay Gao Restaurant - Address: Zone 6 entrance gate, Cai Dam, Bai Chay, Ha Long

Opening hours: 18:00 - 24:00

If you want to try truly authentic seafood porridge, don't miss Cay Gao Restaurant. It specializes in seafood porridge, including shrimp porridge and ngán clam porridge. Other classic Vietnamese dishes, such as ngán clams, eel, and glass noodles with ngan, are just as tempting. Prices range from 30,000 VND - 50,000 VND per bowl, making this an affordable choice that won't break the bank.

3 A Few Tips for Shopping at Cai Dam Seafood Market

- Cai Dam Seafood Market is known for its fresh seafood and reasonable prices. However, nothing is guaranteed, and overcharging and low-quality products can still be found at this busy market. Keep the following tips in mind for a safer shopping experience:

- Walk around the market and compare prices for the items you want at different stalls before deciding where to buy.

- If you're visiting as part of a tour, use your own judgment to assess the quality of each stall. Tour guides may sometimes direct visitors to low-cost, poor-quality stalls in exchange for commission, so don't trust recommendations blindly.

- If vendors offer samples, try them to check the quality and flavor before deciding whether to buy.

- The market sells goods from many different sources, so some products may not have clear origins. Check where items come from and verify their quality to ensure they're safe to buy.

Here is some useful information to help you learn more about traditional Cai Dam Seafood Market. If you get the chance to visit Bai Chay Bridge, be sure to stop by and enjoy the shopping and dining here.